Blunt Criticism Of Saudi Crown Prince Highlights Riyadh's Struggle To Keep Western Allies On Side

The Saudi government has come in for sharp criticism in the UK from someone who had until recently been seen as one of its most reliable supporters, in a sign of the continuing difficulty Riyadh is having in trying to rebuild its reputation after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a Saudi consulate last year.

Crispin Blunt is a former chairman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee of the House of Commons and has been one of the most prominent defenders of Saudi Arabia in the UK over many years. In March last year he said it was “undoubtedly” right for the UK to roll out the red carpet for Crown Prince (and de facto ruler) Mohammed bin Salman when he was visiting London and he has argued strongly against halting arms sales to Riyadh. But he appears to be losing patience with the Saudi leadership and now says the country would be better off with a different person at the top.

Speaking at a public debate in London on February 4 about whether the UK should cut ties with Riyadh, Blunt told the audience “During my 21 years as a Conservative member of Parliament I have consistently defended the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s important relationship with the United Kingdom. And I have supported continued UK arms exports to the Saudi-led coalition [in Yemen].” However, he added he was “most disappointed by the current state of the kingdom and I have acute anxieties for its future and the implications that has for the region.”

The debate was being held against a backdrop of international outrage over Khashoggi’s murder in Istanbul in October (which the C.I.A. has concluded Mohammed bin Salman ordered) as well as heightened concerns about Saudi conduct in the war in Yemen and other allegations of domestic human rights abuses.

Blunt was part of a recent cross-party detention review panel examining the jail conditions of Saudi activists such as Loujain al-Hathloul, Eman al-Nafjan and Aziza al-Yousef who had campaigned for the right of women to drive. Other members of the panel included Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran and Labour MP Paul Williams. During the course of their investigation Blunt wrote to the Saudi ambassador in London Prince Mohammed bin Nawwaf bin Abdulaziz and to Saudi Arabia’s recently appointed foreign minister Ibrahim Abdulaziz al‐Assaf requesting access to the detainees, but received no response from either.

The panel concluded that the detainees’ treatment “constitutes cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and could meet the threshold for torture under both Saudi Arabian and international law.” It added that “Saudi authorities at the highest levels could, in principle, be responsible for the crime of torture, which is a crime of universal jurisdiction.”

Although Blunt was actually arguing against the idea of cutting all ties with Saudi Arabia in the London debate, he said that recent events mean London should reconsider its relationship with Riyadh.

“Torture is a crime of universal jurisdiction and no nation that can claim to be a liberal democracy can in all conscience allow such heinous crimes to go unanswered. So of course we must evaluate our ties with Saudi Arabia,” he said. “The attitude and the actions of the kingdom cannot be tolerated and it has to be seen how our government will recast its relations with Saudi Arabia.”

He added that “a re-evaluation of our defence relationship must be on the table” although he cautioned against severing all military links with Saudi Arabia.

Blunt had particular scorn for crown prince himself, despite previously holding him in high regard. He first met Mohammed bin Salman in December 2015 and said “over a meeting lasting an hour and a half I confess I was impressed by his strategic grasp and his ability to engage on all fronts."

However, he is now sharply critical of the young ruler, saying the Gulf kingdom would be better off with a different person at the helm.

“This is the same guy who almost certainly approved the operation against Jamal Khashoggi,” said Blunt. “This is the same guy whose chief intelligence officer appears to have overseen the mistreatment of women detainees in Saudi Arabia. This is the same guy who has now drawn all the levers of power into his own hands. And yes I think the best thing would be frankly if Saudi Arabia could find itself another ruler.”

Blunt’s criticism is emblematic of the opposition that Saudi Arabia now faces in many Western capitals, even among people who were previously seen as stalwart supporters. The same trend has been clearly evident in the U.S. where Senator Lindsey Graham has been among the most vocal critics of Riyadh in the wake of the Khashoggi affair.